She Lives In You
by sweet7712
Summary: After the Pridelands and the Outlands join together, there is time of peace. Soon after, tragedy strikes. How will the Pride handle this?
1. Chapter 1

_It is a few months after the Pridelands and the Outlands have reunited and combined. There has been peace, and life has never been better in the Pridelands. It is late in the morning, and almost everyone is awake, except for a certain lion..._

"Kovu!"

The dark lion suddenly opened his eyes, and lifted his head from the ground. "What? What is it?" he frantically asked. "Is something wrong Kiara?"

"No, of course not silly!" Kiara said, a smile plastered on her face. She seemed super happy, even more than usual. "There's something I need to tell you, and my mother and father. Come with me!"

"Alright," Kovu said, slightly confused. He slowly got up to his paws, and yawned. He tiredly walked behind the energized Kiara, who had already brought Simba and Nala together.

Kovu sat down next to Simba. "Did she tell you what this is about?" Kovu whispered to him.

"Nope. Nothing." Simba replied.

Kovu sighed, and looked at Kiara. "So, uh, what is it you need to tell us, Kiara?" he asked.

"Well, before any of you woke up, I paid a visit to Rafiki, and..." Kiara said, barely able to contain her excitement. "He said I'm expecting cubs!"

"Kiara that's great!" Nala said, and nuzzled her daughter, with Simba following immediately after.

Kovu sat where he was, shocked. He didn't know what to think, let alone say.

"Isn't this great Kovu?" Kiara said with a smile, walking up and nuzzling him.

"Y-yeah," he said, he said quietly.

"Are you not happy?" Kiara asked, her smile slowly fading.

"N-no! I am. Can we just talk about this somewhere else?" Kovu said.

Kiara looked back at her concerned-looking parents, and nodded at Kovu. "Yes, I uh, suppose so..." She said quietly. She walked to the base of Pride Rock, and Kovu followed.

"What's wrong? I thought you would be more excited!" Kiara exclaimed, sitting down.

"Nothing's wrong. I'm happy we're having cubs, it's just this was so sudden, and we're so young..." Kovu said. "I'm just worried, that's all..."

Kiara gave a sympathetic smile, and walked up to him. She pressed her body up against him, and licked him on the cheek. "You'll be the beat father ever. I just know it," She said.

Kovu gave a slight smile, and licked her back. "Thanks," he said.

"Now, let's go tell the rest of the pride!" Kiara said, and walked up the path to pride rock, with Kovu by her side.


	2. Chapter 2

Kiara telling the rest of the pride she was expecting cubs was a success. All the lionesses congratulated her, though she heard some whispers saying she might be too young to be a mother. She ignored those comments, and insisted to herself that she would be a perfect mother.

Vitani excitedly congratulated her. She also recently found out she was expecting cubs a few weeks ago, and knew that their cubs would be close friends.

Vitani nudged her brother. "Nice job," she chuckled.

Kovu awkwardly laughed. He still wasn't quite sure he was ready to become a father yet. Hopefully he will before his cubs are born...

* * *

Kiara expected her pregnancy to be quick and easy. It was the exact opposite. A few days after her announcement, she grew ill. She couldn't keep any food down, she had a nasty cold, and just felt awful. When she visited Rafiki, he said it was just symptoms of her pregnancy, and that they would go away within a week or two. _They didn't._

Kiara's illness restricted her from doing much. Most days she could not leave Pride Rock. A few rare days she felt well enough to take a walk around the Pridelands, mostly with Kovu.

After one particular evening walk with Kovu, Simba was waiting for them back at Pride Rock. "Glad to see you're back," he said. "Come with me. Me and Nala have something important to tell you."

Kovu and Kiara looked at each other in confusion, and slowly followed Simba. "What is it daddy?" Kiara asked, sitting down.

"Me and your mother have decided to step down from the throne, so you and Kovu can be king and queen."

"Daddy, you don't need to do that," Kiara said, shocked. She looked over at Kovu, who looked equally as shocked as her.

"No, we want to." Simba said with a smile. "You're both proving yourselves responsible enough to become king and queen with your cubs coming soon. Your coronations will be next week. We'll announce it to the pride tomorrow morning."

Kiara still couldn't believe what she had just heard. "But dadd-" She began to say, before being cut off by Nala.

"You're going to become queen sooner or later, and we think you're ready. You will be great ruler, Kiara." She said sympathetically. She walked into the den with Simba, looking back to smile kindly at Kiara.

Kiara stared at Kovu in disbelief. They followed Simba and Nala into the den, where the rest of the lionesses were beginning to go to sleep.

Kovu and Kiara situated themselves in their usual sleeping spot, and went to sleep.

In the middle of the night, Kovu was woken up. "Huh?" he groggily said, as someone was nudging his forearm. It was Kiara, with a worried look on her face. "Kiara, what's wrong?" he whispered.

"Can we go on a walk?" she asked quietly.

The two of them silently exited the den, and walked away from Pride Rock, to an open field, where they laid in the grass, looking at the stars.

"What's wrong?" Kovu asked in concern. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, it's just so much has happened recently, and I don't know if I'll be able to handle all of it. I mean, we're about to have cubs, we're becoming king and queen, and I'm going to have all my royal duties..." Kiara said, sounding like she was about to cry.

Kovu sat up, with Kiara slowly following. He scooted closer to her, and wrapped his arm around her. "I understand. I'm nervous too. Just know that we can handle this, together." he said.

Kiara gave a slight smile. "Thank you," she said with a slight sniffle, and rose to her paws. "Let's go back to Pride Rock,"

They both quietly walked back to Pride Rock, side by side, and slept until the morning sun rose.


	3. Chapter 3

_A week and a half had passed since Kovu and Kiara's talk at night. They were both crowned king and queen, and life for them was starting to become easier. Kiara was still pretty ill, but was starting to feel slightly better as time went on. The pride also welcomed Vitani's new cubs, two little boys._

"They're beautiful Vitani!" Kiara said, looking at the small cubs, who were nestled between their mothers arms. "What have you named them?"

"This one is called Sefu," Vitani said, gesturing to one of the cubs with loving eyes. His fur was slightly darker than his mother, and he was a little bit smaller than his brother. "And I'm calling this one Chi." She said, looking at the other cub with a smile. He had somewhat darker fur than his twin, and was larger. Despite this, he was much more calm and submissive than Sefu. Sefu was a bit of a bully towards his brother

"Congrats, sis." Kovu said to Vitani. He looked down at the tiny cubs, who had slightly opened their eyes, showing that they both had their mothers bright blue eyes. "It'll only be a few more weeks until they have a few cousins to play with."

"Yeah, plus a few other lionesses are expecting cubs soon too, so everyone will have lots of others to play with," Kiara added. "Well, we'll let you and your little ones rest. Bye Vitani!"

Kovu and Kiara walked out of the den, looking at each other, and smiling.

A few days after Vitani had her cubs, and Kiara and Kovu visited them, Kiara went into labor.

The sun was almost about to set, and Kovu nervously waited at the base of Pride Rock. He looked down, while tapping his paw on the ground. He heard someone walking down towards him, and looked up to see who it was. It was Simba.

"How are you doing down here?" Simba asked, sitting next to Kovu.

"Fine. Just nervous..." Kovu replied.

"That's normal," Simba said. "I felt the same way when Kiara was born."

"But was Kiara born this early?" Asked Kovu, worriedly looking into Simbas eyes.

"Well, no." Simba said, and rose to his paws. "But the cubs will be fine. I'm sure of it." He began to walk back up to Pride Rock.

Kovu sighed. He couldn't get his sense of doubt out of his mind. He sat there and waited for a few more hours, until Rafiki came down.

"They're here." Rafiki said with a smile. "Kiara said she only wanted you to see them first, so get up there."

With a big smile on his face, Kovu ran up to Pride Rock to see his mate, and new cubs.


	4. Chapter 4

Kovu stopped at the entrance of the cave where Kiara and the new cubs were. He took a deep breath, and slowly walked in.

Kiara laid in the back of the cave, heavily breathing, with her eyes closed. She just noticed Kovu, as he was nearly at her side. She opened her eyes slightly. "Kovu..." she said shakily, with a weak smile.

Kovu's excitement quickly changed into concern for his mate. "Kiara, what's wrong? You're okay, right?" he asked, trying to hide the worry in his voice.

Kiara broke her gaze with Kovu. A tear ran down her cheek, as she slightly frowned. "I-I'm not okay." she weakly began. "I hid my pain f-from Rafiki. I didn't want anyone but y-you in here..."

Kovu looked at her, then at the ground, trying to hold back tears. He took a deep breath, and looked back at her. He went and nuzzled her, as a few tears fell from his eyes.

Kiara smiled as she was crying. Her breathing began to slow down. "Goodbye Kovu. I love you..." she whispered, and her eyes slowly closed.

Kovu laid down, face to face with her, and broke down crying. "Why her," he quietly said. He kept crying until he was able to control himself a little while later. He groggily sat up, and silently looked at Kiara's lifeless body, with more tears welling up in his eyes. This only lasted a few moments, until he heard a tiny squeak from behind her.

 _The cubs._

Kovu quickly got to his feet, and to the squeaking. There were two tiny cubs behind Kiara. They were small enough that Kovu could pick both of them up at the same time. He brought them to where he was just mourning their mother, and put them on the ground, which made them squeak and cry a little bit louder. He wrapped his front legs around them, and sadly sighed. He looked over at Kiara, and thought that she should be doing this, and not him.

Kovu looked down at his two cubs. _A boy and a girl._ They were both smaller than average, since they were born premature. The boy was a mix of both his parents colors, which made him a medium brown. His little tail-tuft was a rich dark brown, and his eye shades were dark, like his father's. His toes, muzzle, and underbelly were slightly lighter than the rest of his fur, and he had a tiny black outlander's nose. His eyes opened slightly, but just enough for Kovu to see that his son had his green eyes.

The little girl looked more like Kovu than her mother. She almost had the same fur coloration as her father, only a little lighter, and with a hint of her mother's golden color. She had a dark brown tail-tuft, and dark eye shades. Her nose was the same as her brother's and father's, and she had her mother's brown eyes, though hers were darker.

Kovu looked at his cubs, and smiled slightly, even though he was stricken with grief. He remembered that he and Kiara had thought of a few names for their cubs, soon after finding out she was expecting. He first looked at his son, thinking for a moment. "Amadi," he said, then looked at his daughter. "Abena."

Kovu once again looked at Kiara's body. He looked away, and sighed. _I have to tell Simba,_ he thought. He stood up, and picked the cubs up again. He slowly walked out of the cave, and onto pride rock, where Simba and Nala were talking and waiting. Simba turned around, and greeted Kovu, who gently set the cubs down.

"Hello Kovu," Simba said turning around. He looked down at the two cubs. "Huh? Why do you have the cubs?"

"Shouldn't they be with Kiara?" Nala asked, confused.

Tears began to well up in Kovu's eyes again. "Sh-she's gone..." he said, breaking down.

Simba's eyes widened in disbelief. "No..." he whispered.

Nala broke down into tears too. Simba comforted her as much as he could, but he too couldn't hold back his tears.

Soon the entire Pridelands knew about their queen's death, and everyone mourned for her for days. There was a public ceremony remembering Kiara, which was officiated by Rafiki. He called for the great kings of the past to accept her and make her feel welcome up in the stars.

Vitani agreed to nurse Amadi and Abena without any hesitation. The twins would spent most of their time bonding with their father, and playing with their cousins, Sefu and Chi.

Though he looked happy and alright on the outside, Kovu was still not over Kiara's death. The night before his cub's presentation to the Pridelands, he went to the field where he and Kiara had watched the stars for the last time before her passing. "Kiara," he said, looking up at the stars. "Please guide me through everything in the future. I don't know how I'm gonna do anything without you..."

He looked down at the ground, and closed his eyes, drifting fast asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

_Hey everyone! Very long time no see… It's been almost 2 years since this was updated (whoops lol). But, in a sudden feeling of motivation, I felt like at least completing this chapter. I don't know when I'll post more chapters after this, it could be tomorrow, next week, or another 2 years. (¯\\_(_ _ツ_ _)_/¯). I hope to post more consistently… Anyways, I hope you've enjoyed the story so far!_

* * *

 _It was the day of Amadi and Abena's presentations. Kovu had returned to Priderock early that morning, to watch the procession of all the animals. At sunhigh, the ceremonies began._

Rafiki preformed the traditions of applying the juice and dust on the foreheads of the cubs, then presented them. Abena was presented first, as the crowd cheered. Then, Amadi was presented. He was born first, making him heir to the throne. The crowd cheered, and bowed, as they looked at their future king.

Kovu watched as his two cubs were presented to the animals living in the Pridelands. It was the first time he had been truly happy since the death of his beloved. He looked up to the sky, to see rays of sunlight shining directly on them. Kovu smiled, as a small gust of wind blew around them. He could sense that Kiara was with him and their cubs on their special day.

"I'm glad you're here today, Kiara." Kovu said, quietly to himself, looking up at a small opening of clouds. "I'm glad you'll always be with us."

* * *

Months pass, and the cubs of the pride grew older, and lively. Several more cubs had been born since Abena and Amadi's ceremony. Many friendships were formed, and the cubs appeared very happy. Except for one…

Abena slowly opened her eyes. She had been sleeping next to her father and brother. She was an early-bird, and almost always woke up just before the sunrise. She looked out of the opening of Pride Rock, to see the sky slowly lighting up. She quickly got to her feet, and carefully scampered out to the edge of the rock. Watching the sunrise was almost always the highlight of her day. It was the only time she was in pure solitude.

Abena watched the sun rise, and the Prideland light up with sunlight. When the sun was fully risen, Abena heard footsteps from behind her. She turned her head to see her father walking towards her. "Good morning," he said, sitting next to Abena.

"Hi dad," Abena said, and nuzzled her father. "Are we doing anything today?" she asked, looking up at her father with bright eyes.

"About that," Kovu began. "I think you should be playing with the other cubs, and not spend all your day with me. I think it's better for you to be with friends, rather than your father all the time."

Abena's smile faded. "But I don't want to play with them! They don't want to play with me either!" She protested.

"I'll tell Amadi to tell the other cubs you'll be tagging along with them," Kovu said, and licked his daughter on the head. "They'll want to play with you. I promise." He looked up at the sky, then back to the entrance of Priderock. "Me and uncle Kion are patrolling the eastern territory today. We won't be back until after sundown. I expect to hear good things about your day when I get back."

"Yes dad," Abena said, a slight frown on her face. She watched her father walk back into the cave entrance. She slumped down, with her paws hanging over the edge of Priderock. She sighed, and hoped her day wasn't going to be as bad as she thought.


End file.
